Traffic and Chinese

The world is a mess! But sometimes, that works out alright. We were stuck in a huge mess of traffic tonight. I swear that every tax dollar, every federal incentive dollar has gone into tearing up our streets. Every street it seems. While it took us an hour and a half to go about 5 miles on the highway, my hubby was stuck in the same mess. So much for getting dinner on the table in a timely fashion.

Once John drug his weary bones through the door, he mentioned that he almost called to say to meet him for Chinese food on one of the few clear streets. Being the sensitive hubby he is, and knowing I have been seriously dieting as of late, he refrained from bringing me into such temptation. While I love Chinese food, it is notorious for hiding unrecognizable carbs. So, I changed up our dinner plans a bit for the occasion. Instead of the Hobo Dinners I had planned, I opted for Chinese.

This was possible because my spice cabinet, like the world, is a mess right now. I really thought I had extra soy sauce, but did not. That in turn foiled my plans to make the Chinese soup we were supposed to have for lunch today. But, it did still allow for a quick stir fry to make my guy happy. It is good for my diet too since I am adding back in fats right now, so it all works out afterall.

I simply have used the leftover Chinese Chicken from our Triple Play meal. I added broccoli and celery and a good helping of roasted sesame seed oil. That stuff has amazing flavor! I think I would like old shoe leather if it was drenched in roasted sesame oil. Plus, thanks to my diet efforts as of late, I have found a new love for cooked celery. It is really tasty grilled or sauteed as in this recipe, and adds a great little crunch. I have also discovered that I love chicken and celery soup. Pretty good considering I really do not care for raw celery sticks-- even with peanut butter.

Because the chicken is already marinated and full of flavor, this stir fry did not need a sauce. Since those are tricky to make without starches, that makes this all the easier. Now on to some relaxation after all those traffic headaches!

Embarrassingly Easy BBQ Beef

So easy I blush. Surely this is too simple to blog about, but it is what we had for dinner tonight, so....this is it. Embarrassing, I know.

Crock pot meals tend to be a bit on the simple side. True comfort food. This qualifies on both. All I did today was add a package of beef medallions--that's what the guys at the meat sale call them. They are more like odd sized chunks of, say, stew meat. Great for slow cooking. At $1.50 a pound, we find several ways to eat them. Today, I just poured some of the KC Masterpiece Classic Blend sauce over the top. I do realize there has been a lot of talk about this sauce being discontinued, but the grocery store down the street from me still stocks it. I don't get it, but I am not complaining. I have stocked up just in case my little corner of the planet has the last remaining store of this wonderful stuff. Why is all the diet/diabetic stuff disappearing lately? It's not like America is suddenly skinny.

Today, I cooked this on high for 4 hours. The meat was tender enough to cut with a fork. Since the sauce tends to get a bit lost with the meat juices, I poured a bit more on top after I served it. Good Stuff. The leftovers are great to shred and serve in lettuce rolls with onion and pickle.

I was in the mood for brussel sprouts tonight, so we all had a different side dish. That's not so bad when the entree is so easy. I sure don't make a habit of that though!

Skillet Tricks and Tacos

I have my grandma's old cast iron skillet. I use it often, but sometimes eggs stick. I could never figure out why, when old cast iron is supposed to be nearly as good as a non stick finish. Yes, I had seasoned. Nope, no soaps. So what was the problem? I snooped around online today and found my solution. Armed with new knowledge, I made an egg and cheese base for Mexican Minute Beef for the hubby. It worked great.

I found the secret is not only to keep the skillet oiled, but also to do a couple of little tricks before cooking. Start with a nice, smooth surface. Scrape it with a metal spatula if needed. I read that just a touch of bacon fat is superior to build up the layers of grease needed to keep foods from sticking. I didn't have any of that, so I just used oil. I will try bacon fat next time. The next step is to heat the skillet well before adding food. I waited until a little smoke was evident. Then, if you plan on using salt and pepper, sprinkle those into the empty skillet. They help the non stick quality. I poured in 2 beaten eggs mixed with 1/3 cup of cheese. Wow. It worked--no sticking. I was able to pick up the whole mixture with the spatula! Amazing considering the cheese was all melty too.

Once that was plated, I added seasoned meat and a bit more cheese. Salsa would be good too. I made a tomato, onion and cilantro salad. The boy got regular crispy taco shells for his dinner. He stays away from eggs.

Because I have the Mexican Minute Beef already crumbled and cooked, this meal goes together in no time!

Feed the Freezer...

...and later, it will feed you!

Today I cooked up lots of Freezer Favorites. My hubby brought me 12 pounds of chicken breast. First off, I set almost 4 pounds in my marinade for Triple Play Chinese Chicken. The guys ate some for dinner tonight. Later this week I will make it into a soup and even later, a wonderful salad with bok choy. Both are delish! I featured both of these about a year ago. Look here and here for more info. That is a photo from last year, but trust me it is nicer than a picture of freezer bags. I think I will have enough left over to put some Chinese Chicken Cubes in the freezer for longer term storage, but I need to see how hungry they are this week.

I also saved some birdy breasts to make some Blackened Chicken. The spice mix recipe is in the January newsletter. That is feeding the freezer this week. I cooked it, (love the sizzle in a hot skillet) and then sliced it for really good salads on the go. I love mine with a splash of hot wing sauce and some blue cheese dressing. If you move the slices around a bit while they are freezing, you will be able to grab a few slices at a time for single salads.

After the chicken was done, I decided on the spur of the moment to use the marinade for some beef medallions I was thawing for a barbecue crock pot dish later in the week. So I let those marinate about an hour and then baked them. These too are going into the freezer. I can pull out a meal's worth and defrost really quickly. These work well added to stir fry dishes, or simply reheated with some cauliflower rice or my personal fave--snow peas. I usually keep some rice cooked in individual servings for my carby boy. I should have done that today, but forgot. That skinny boy can eat these as sandwiches too.

Lastly, I made a triple batch of Mediterranean Chicken. All of that went into the freezer too. I found a great deal at Big Lots with a one carb Italian dressing for the marinade. Just a dollar. Doesn't get much easier or cheaper than that. This is one of the Dump recipes that I don't bake before freezing. Easier on prep day, you just remember to thaw the day before.

Since I have been restricting calories, I have not been eating my share of the weekly breakfast casserole. That means I didn't need to bake one today. We still had leftovers from last week. If you find one casserole is just too much, go ahead and do like I did. Slice it into individual servings and wrap well in plastic wrap. Then put the individual pieces into a gallon size freezer bag labeled with the recipe name and the date. Even husbands who don't cook can rewarm these for a hot breakfast.

See what time savers can be accomplished on a Sunday afternoon? (also made some Tilapia soup and experimented with a new recipe for hot wing chicken.) Going to get some yogurt started this evening too. All in a day's fun.

A Triple Play Roast Beef

When my college boys aren't around, a crock pot roast goes much farther. This one I was able to turn into a Triple Play meal. The first meal we had as a simple crock pot roast. Instead of potatoes, I peeled up a rutabaga. In went some onion and celery too. Those both add so much flavor.

So my two remaining boys were happy. This is truly a manly meal. For lunch the next day, however, I changed it up a bit. MMM. Smokey Beef Spread. This is actually a recipe I have used with leftover brisket, but roast will do. Since I still have my mom's Ninja machine, I used it to chop up the roast. I think I overdid it a bit and absolutely pulverized the poor thing. This spread really looks nothing like the brisket version. That I have always diced by hand and it remained chunky. I think I prefer the look of the chunkier spread, but the ease of the Ninja version. Maybe, you could use a food processor and try not to overmix. I seem to always get too much of a good thing.



The recipe for the spread is in the e-book. It is basically a mayo and cream cheese dressing mixed with chopped pickles and liquid smoke. Fantastic flavor. This time, since I was running a bit low on roast beef, I added two hard boiled eggs. Fortunately, I did not add those to the Ninja!


To serve the spread, I gave John one half a lavash bread and made it a roll up. The rest went on celery sticks.

The third meal will be a vegetable soup, using the broth from the roast, some leftover veggies baked with it, and some veggies added fresh. Just use what you have in the fridge; nearly anything goes. Mushrooms and celery are great choices.

3 Ingredient Dump--Sticky Chicky

This dump meal has been available to the devotees of Once a Month Cooking for ages. John has decided he really likes it. Christian looked at me crazy the first time he saw me mixing up peanut butter and ketchup. Sounds gross, but ends up pretty darn good. Just substitute the Heinz no sugar ketchup, and the recipe is low carb. Since the newsletter featured 3 ingredient recipes, I had to try this one out for you. This is one of several dump recipes in the newsletter. Can't get easier.

The easiest thing in the world to prep. Just mix the sauce right in a gallon freezer bag. Add the chicken tenders and mix it all up, then freeze.

Sticky Chicky Dump

1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders, frozen or fresh
3 tablespoons no sugar ketchup
3 tablespoons natural peanut butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce

Mix dump ingredients in a gallon size freezer bag. Add chicken and move the bag around until all surfaces are coated with sauce. Freeze, or let marinate for 2 or more hours. Bake thawed chicken for 20-30 minutes or until no longer pink in the thickest parts.

I think the frozen tenders I had purchased on sale had been injected with a solution. After they cooked just a few minutes, the pan was filled with a watery substance. I chose to pour this off so the sauce would stay thick. I don't think fresh, natural tenders would produce that much fluid. Live and learn.

I put all the leftovers in a small divided container and popped it in the freezer. Now John will have his own t.v. dinner some day to take for lunch. If you do the same, don't forget to add that to the freezer inventory sheet or it may get lost. Who knows what may lurk in the back of freezers?

Italian Chicken Sausage Soup

Remember the other day when I gave you the recipe for Chicken Sausage Meatballs? I told you I was planning a soup, and here it is. I had made enough chicken sausage for several meals, so this chicken came from the freezer today. It was not made into balls, I just froze it as a chunk. I defrosted in a microwave, then added to the pot to brown.

Italian Chicken Sausage Soup for One

3-4 ounces of chicken sausage
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup canned diced tomatoes
2 cups fresh spinach
pinch of lemon pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
pinch of pepper
salt to taste

Lightly brown the chicken sausage in the soup pot. Add all remaining ingredients and simmer gently for 5-10 minutes.


The chicken sausage is really flavorful and adds so much to the soup. Overall, this is very light on calories too. I just love all those soup commercials that claim how healthy and light their soups are. I am sure with all the additives, this home made soup is far healthier...and fresher tasting too!